World Champion Patrick Chan (CAN) is aiming for his third consecutive Grand Prix Final title and comes with a seasons best of 262.35 points to Russia. Competition should come from World bronze medalist Yuzuru Hanyu (JPN/seasonsbest 261.03 points), World and Grand Prix Final silver medalist Daisuke Takahashi (JPN/seasons best 251.51) as well as defending Grand Prix Final bronze medalist Javier Fernandez (ESP/seasons best 253.94). Takahiko Kozuka (JPN/seasons best 251.44 points) and Tatsuki Machida (JPN/seasons best 236.92 points) want to challenge for the podium as well. Chan, Hanyu and Kozuka all qualified with a win and a second place on the Grand Prix circuit. Machida is the only newcomer to the Final.

If Mura has made it to the GPF by placing higher at Skate Canada, the GPF men's event may as well as the Japanese Nationals + Chan. I think this is the first time any country managed to secure 4 entries within the same discipline at a GPF.

Can Patrick Chan survive the onslaught of Japanese competition in Sochi? This will be very interesting.

If Mura has made it to the GPF by placing higher at Skate Canada, the GPF men's event may as well as the Japanese Nationals + Chan. I think this is the first time any country managed to secure 4 entries within the same discipline at a GPF.

Can Patrick Chan survive the onslaught of Japanese competition in Sochi? This will be very interesting.

I think Patrick will still be the one to beat. But, good luck to all; hope they all skate their best!!

Hanyu will win the SP if the jumps are there. Chan and Fernandez will score well if the jumps are there. The other three men will be playing catch in the free unless they land their SP quads. The PCS for Hanyu will drop slightly, as will those for all the Japanese skaters, Chan's will go up and Fernandez will stay about the same.

Hanyu will win the SP if the jumps are there. Chan and Fernandez will score well if the jumps are there. The other three men will be playing catch in the free unless they land their SP quads. The PCS for Hanyu will drop slightly, as will those for all the Japanese skaters, Chan's will go up and Fernandez will stay about the same.

I would urge caution against reading too much into Hanyu's SP scores. The reason being GOE can fluctuate quite a bit from competition to competition. Even a seemingly minor error could have a large repercussion on the overall mark. Take for example, Chan's COR SP. The Quad was fine but instead of a Triple Toe, he singled the toe. As a result, he lost about 4.0 in BV, and approximately 5.0 on the GOE given that if he had done the Triple, he would most likely get a +2 GOE for that element if not more, therefore, the difference between +2 and -3 is a difference of 5.0 for an overall impact of at least 9.0 on the TES alone. No telling how that would affect the PCS without the error. Suffice to say, everything considered, Chan could easily up his COR SP score by 10 points. So the picture becomes quite fuzzy as to what happens if they both skate cleanly but I tend to think in a head to head showdown, Chan would easily in the PCS but the overall difference should be small. It's the FS that will be the hardest for Hanyu. And I wouldn't discount the other very good skaters like Kozuka and Fernandez. To me, if everyone skate to their best potential, the top 3 would be between Fernandez, Chan and Hanyu in whatever order. That said, ice is slippery, we'll just have to wait and see.